#home tuition for class 10

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How Learning Potato Delivers Effective Home Tuition for 10th Class

Class 10 is a crucial academic milestone that lays the foundation for future studies and board exams. At this stage, personalized guidance can make a significant difference in understanding concepts and scoring well. With the rising demand for tailored learning, home tuition for 10th class has become a popular choice among students and parents. Learning Potato, a trusted education platform, offers both expert home tutors for class 10 and flexible online tuition for class 10. Let’s explore how Learning Potato delivers effective home tuition and online classes that cater to every student's unique needs.

Why Choose Learning Potato for Home Tutors for Class 10?

Learning Potato stands out due to its meticulous tutor selection process. Only highly qualified and experienced educators make it to their team of home tutors for class 10. This ensures students get access to teachers who are well-versed with the CBSE syllabus and other board patterns.

Moreover, Learning Potato customizes tutor-student matches based on academic needs, learning styles, and availability. Whether a student struggles with math or science, they are paired with the best tutor to address those specific challenges. The flexibility of scheduling home tuition sessions allows learning to happen at convenient times, creating a comfortable and distraction-free environment.

Features of Home Tuition for 10th Class with Learning Potato

One of the most valuable aspects of Learning Potato’s home tuition for the 10th class is its personalized approach. Tutors design customized study plans aligned with the student’s syllabus and board requirements. This targeted learning ensures that weak areas are strengthened while keeping the student on track with their curriculum.

The one-on-one attention provided in-home tuition sessions enables students to clear doubts instantly, which is often difficult in crowded classrooms. Learning Potato also emphasizes continuous evaluation. Regular progress tracking and detailed feedback are shared with both students and parents, making it easier to monitor improvement and adjust teaching methods if needed.

The Benefits of Online Tuition for Class 10 Through Learning Potato

Apart from home tutors, Learning Potato offers excellent online tuition for class 10, making quality education accessible regardless of location. Their online classes for class 10 CBSE are conducted by certified teachers who use interactive tools to keep students engaged.

The convenience of online learning means students can attend live sessions from home, eliminating commute time and ensuring safety. Additionally, recorded sessions are available for revision, helping students revisit difficult topics at their own pace. The platform also provides supplementary study materials and quizzes, reinforcing learning outside class hours.

How Learning Potato Blends Home Tuition and Online Classes for Class 10

Understanding that each student’s learning preference is different, Learning Potato offers a hybrid learning approach. Students can choose between in-person home tutors for class 10 or flexible online tuition for class 10, based on what suits them best.

Many students benefit from a combination of both — attending online classes for conceptual clarity and using home tuition for personalized doubt-solving and practice. This blend ensures comprehensive preparation for board exams and builds confidence.

Learning Potato’s commitment to quality education shines through its expert home tutors for class 10 and engaging online tuition for class 10 programs. Whether you prefer the personalized environment of home tuition or the flexibility of online classes for class 10 CBSE, Learning Potato caters to every need with tailored solutions.

For parents and students looking for effective, reliable, and accessible learning support, exploring Learning Potato is a smart step toward academic success. Connect with their expert tutors today and give your child the advantage they deserve!

[searchtuition]

Comprehensive Home Tuition in Delhi: From Nursery to Class 10

Education is the foundation of every child's future, and providing the right learning environment plays a crucial role in their academic journey. Whether it's the formative years of nursery education or the crucial high school stage, personalized attention can make all the difference. This is where home tuition becomes invaluable, particularly for parents seeking quality education in Delhi.

For students from nursery classes to Class 10, home tuition offers a tailored approach to meet their unique learning needs. With platforms like Search Tuition, finding the right tutor for your child is simple and convenient. In this blog, we will discuss the importance of home tuition in Delhi for various age groups, including Class 10 students and young learners from home tuition for class 1 to 5.

Why Choose Home Tuition?

In a conventional classroom setting, a single teacher often manages a large number of students. This makes it challenging to provide personalized attention to each child, especially in a city as fast-paced as Delhi. On the other hand, home tuition offers a more focused, one-on-one learning experience. Here are some key benefits of opting for home tuition:

Personalized Attention: A home tutor can focus entirely on your child's needs, customizing lessons to address their strengths and weaknesses.

Flexible Schedule: Home tuition allows flexibility in scheduling, which can accommodate your child's other activities, ensuring a balanced routine.

Improved Academic Performance: Students often perform better academically when they receive individualized support. Home tutors can identify problem areas and work on them effectively.

Confidence Building: One-on-one sessions allow students to ask questions freely and clear their doubts, boosting their confidence in the subject.

Home Tuition for Nursery Classes: Building the Foundation

The early years of education are critical in shaping a child's future learning habits. During nursery, children begin to develop their cognitive, motor, and social skills. At this tender age, they require more attention and patience, something a home tutor can provide better than a traditional classroom environment.

Home tuition for nursery classes focuses on:

Basic Skills Development: Tutors help children learn essential skills like recognizing letters, numbers, and shapes, developing early literacy and numeracy.

Interactive Learning: Nursery-age children learn best through play and interaction. A home tutor can create a fun, engaging environment that keeps them interested and excited about learning.

Social and Emotional Growth: A personal tutor can help foster social and emotional development, teaching children how to communicate, share, and understand emotions in a one-on-one setting.

With a home tutor from Search Tuition, your child can receive the attention they need during these crucial formative years. Our experienced tutors create a supportive learning atmosphere, ensuring that young learners build a strong educational foundation.

Home Tuition for Classes 1 to 5: Strengthening Core Concepts

As children progress from nursery to early primary school, the educational challenges grow more complex. These formative years set the foundation for a student's academic future, and it is important to ensure that they fully understand key concepts in subjects like math, language, and science.

Home tuition for Classes 1 to 5 focuses on:

Conceptual Clarity: Early primary education focuses on building the basics of math, science, and languages. A home tutor can ensure that the student grasps these concepts thoroughly.

Reading and Writing Skills: Developing literacy skills during these years is crucial. Home tuition helps in strengthening reading comprehension and writing skills.

Individualized Attention: Every student has a unique learning pace, and a home tutor can adapt the lessons accordingly, ensuring that no child falls behind.

Confidence Boosting: Struggling in a large classroom can be discouraging for young students. A home tutor can help build the child’s confidence through personalized teaching methods and regular feedback.

At Search Tuition, our tutors understand the specific learning requirements of children in these age groups. Whether it’s extra help with homework, preparation for exams, or general academic support, our tutors provide the personalized guidance that primary school students need.

Home Tuition in Delhi for Class 10: Preparing for Board Exams

Class 10 is a pivotal year in a student’s academic life. The board exams taken at the end of this year are often the first major test students face, and the results can have a significant impact on their future academic choices. For students in Delhi, where competition is fierce, home tuition can be the key to excelling in Class 10 board exams.

Home tuition for Class 10 focuses on:

Comprehensive Exam Preparation: Tutors work with students to cover the entire syllabus, ensuring that no topic is left unaddressed.

Test-Taking Strategies: Home tutors can teach valuable exam techniques, helping students manage their time effectively during the exam and tackle different types of questions.

Concept Reinforcement: Tutors provide detailed explanations and regular practice to reinforce key concepts in subjects like math, science, social studies, and languages.

Personalized Study Plans: Each student has different strengths and weaknesses. A home tutor will create a personalized study plan, focusing more on areas that need improvement while reinforcing strong points.

Regular Assessments: Home tutors can provide regular tests and assessments to track the student’s progress and prepare them thoroughly for the final exams.

The experienced tutors available through Search Tuition can make all the difference in a student's performance during this critical year. With their focused attention and customized learning strategies, Class 10 students can approach their board exams with confidence and ease.

Why Choose Search Tuition?

At Search Tuition, we connect students with highly qualified and experienced home tutors across Delhi for all academic levels. Whether your child is in nursery, primary school, or preparing for Class 10 board exams, we have tutors who specialize in delivering personalized education tailored to your child’s unique needs.

Why choose us?

Wide Range of Tutors: We offer a pool of highly qualified tutors who specialize in various subjects and grade levels.

Verified Tutors: All our tutors are thoroughly vetted and verified, ensuring that your child receives quality education from trusted professionals.

Flexible Scheduling: Our tutors offer flexible schedules that fit your family’s routine.

Affordable Options: We offer competitive rates, ensuring that personalized home tuition is accessible to all families in Delhi.

Conclusion

Home tuition is an investment in your child’s future. Whether it’s laying the foundation in nursery or preparing for Class 10 board exams, personalized one-on-one teaching can enhance a student's learning experience and academic success. With Search Tuition, finding the right tutor for home tuition in Delhi is easy and hassle-free. Connect with us today and give your child the support they need to thrive academically!

[campiona1]

No.1 Tuition : Achieved 98% : Campion A1 Boosted My Marks.

No.1 Tuition : Achieved 98% : Campion A1 Boosted My Marks. CBSE No.1 Tuition : Witness my remarkable journey from 45% to 98% with Campion A1. Join now for a career-defining turning point and Excel in Exams. From 45 % to 98 % , I scored 98 % all because of Campion A1. Campion A1 is the turning point in my career.Join Campion A1 Tuition Today says Bhaskar No.1 Tuition : Achieved 98% : Campion A1…

[krishnahometuitions]

Home Tuition in Chandigarh| Krishna Home Tuition

Are you Looking for Home Tutor who connect well with you child. join our Krishna home tuition in Chandigarh provide best home tutor. you can hire male or female home tutor, our experienced home tutor teach all subjects of any classes and boards. Call: 8264723285

[hometuition12]

best physics tuition in gurgaon | Hometuition

If you are looking for home tutors in the bustling city of Gurgaon, your quest for academic excellence will be answered at SDK ITS Solutions Pvt. Ltd. We take great pride in offering top-tier home tuition services, spanning a wide variety of subjects from the intricacies of Physics and Chemistry to the mathematical world of mathematics and beyond. Our commitment to enhancing educational opportunities is not limited by location; We provide our expertise and support in all corners of Gurgaon.

Here is a comprehensive overview of what you can expect from SDK ITS Home Tuition, your trusted partner in educational development:

SDK ITS Home Tuition Unveiled

Where knowledge comes easy

Our home tuition services are designed to provide students with a learning experience that is not only practical but also comfortable. We understand that the right learning environment is essential for effective education, and what could be more comfortable than your own home? Our teachers bring the class to your doorstep.

Topics galore

At SDK ITS Home Tuition, we believe in catering to the diverse needs of our students. Whether you are grappling with the complexities of physics, conducting experiments in chemistry, or solving the mysteries of mathematics, our subject-specific tutors are here to guide you. We also provide support in various other subjects, ensuring a holistic learning experience.

Location is not a barrier

One of the standout features of SDK ITS Home Tuition is our accessibility. We provide our services at all locations in Gurgaon, crossing geographical barriers. No matter where you live in this vibrant city, our teachers are immediately available to facilitate your learning journey.

Personalized learning

We understand that every student is unique, and their learning needs vary. That is why our home tuition services are personalized to meet individual needs. Whether you need extra help in specific subjects or want to accelerate your learning, our teachers adapt their teaching methods to suit you.

Contact us today

Are you ready to begin your journey to academic excellence? To learn more about our home tuition services, do not hesitate to contact our home tuition office:

SDK ITS Home Tuition

SDK ITS Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

M-1, Ground Floor, Old DLF, Sector 14, Gurgaon 122001

Call: +918745826060, +918130136745

[learningpotato555]

Advantages of Home Tuition vs. Traditional Classroom Learning for Class-10 Students

As the academic pressures mount and the significance of Class 10 as a pivotal educational year looms large, parents and students are often confronted with a key question: Home Tuition or Traditional Classroom Learning? Let's navigate the nuances of both to make an informed decision.

Traditional Classroom Learning: The Time-Tested Method

The traditional classroom is an age-old setup with its nostalgic charm. It’s where a group of students engages with a subject under the guidance of a teacher. Chalk and talk, textbooks, and notes dominate this sphere.

Home Tuition: The Personalized Approach

Home tuition, on the other hand, is the embodiment of personalized education. It’s a setting where an educator tailors each lesson to a student's specific needs, all within the comfort and familiarity of the student’s home.

Why Home Tuition Shines for Class-10 Students

Personalized Attention: In home tuition, educators can adapt lessons to address a student's unique strengths and weaknesses, ensuring no topic is left unclear.

Flexible Schedule: No more missing lessons due to extracurricular activities or illness. Home tuition accommodates the student's schedule.

Safe and Comfortable Environment: The home setting can reduce stress and create a conducive learning environment, devoid of common classroom distractions.

Immediate Feedback: With the one-on-one model, doubts are addressed instantly, cementing understanding.

Customized Study Materials: Beyond the constraints of standard textbooks, tutors might introduce supplementary materials catering to the student's interests.

Boost in Confidence: The close rapport between student and tutor often leads to enhanced self-assurance, especially vital in an important academic year.

The Unyielding Benefits of Traditional Classrooms

Structured Learning: The set curriculum pace and timetable ensure a systematic approach to each subject.

Peer Interaction: This promotes collaborative projects, group discussions, and cultivates a competitive spirit.

Diverse Teaching Methods: Different teachers bring varied teaching techniques to the table, giving students a rich educational palette.

Extracurricular Growth: Schools offer a range of clubs and activities that promote holistic growth.

Development of Real-world Skills: Navigating school life teaches students essential life skills, from time management to interpersonal communication.

Balancing the Scales: What Resonates with Class-10 Students?

Understanding individual needs is crucial. While some students flourish with personal attention in home tuitions, others thrive in the structured, competitive environment of classrooms. Given the pressures of board exams and the onset of pre-college preparations, it's essential to pick a medium where the student feels most supported.

Narratives from the Ground

Consider Ravi, a Class-10 student struggling with mathematics. Home tuitions transformed his academic journey, allowing him to delve deep into problematic topics, leading to a commendable board exam score.

On the other hand, Priya, a well-rounded student, found her rhythm in traditional classrooms. The opportunity to engage in group discussions, combined with the structured approach of school, propelled her to academic excellence.

Concluding Thoughts

There's no one-size-fits-all in education. As Class 10 is a defining year, the choice between home tuition and traditional classroom learning should be anchored in the student's comfort, learning style, and academic goals. Perhaps, a blend of both, where structured school learning is supplemented with personalized home tuitions, might just be the recipe for success.

For parents and students navigating this crucial phase, remember: the objective is a confident, well-prepared student, regardless of the learning medium.

Learning Potato as one of the best providers of Home tuition in Pune can help you with the best techniques and strategies to make full use of your online tuition and help students study more effectively and efficiently. Get in touch with us for your home tuition and Home Tuition And Online Classes For Class-10. We help students with the best faculty available for all classes, college, and more.

[creampuffqueen]

Mal's Modern Avatars AU

Welcome one and all to my Avatar College AU, the premise of which is that the three female Avatars share an apartment during college and are all best friends. This is the official character intro post!

Yangchen Ngodup - she/her

Major: International Relations, minoring in Philosophy, Psychology, and Political Science (yes she is insane for this)

Sport: Volleyball setter (fall) & track sprinter (spring)

Clubs: Debate team, Model UN, Volunteer Chair for Eco-Representatives Club, Choir (soprano) & Class President her senior year

Family: Raised by her older sister, Jetsun, who disappeared without a trace when Yangchen was 7. After her sister's disappearance she lived with her elderly relatives Tsering and Dagmola. Her senior year of high school she went to live with her Uncle Boma in order to get in-state tuition for her top choice college

Other: Owns two siamese cats named Pik and Pak. Routinely exceeds the daily recommended caffeine limit. Leader of a bar trivia team that kicks ass

Kavik Aliyak - he/him

Major: Pre-med, hoping to specialize in emergency medicine

Sport: Intramural wrestling for one semester, drops it for intramural ice hockey

Clubs: Math Club, Chess Club, Pre-med Society

Family: Parents Tapeesa and Ujurak, brother Kalyaan who is 3 years older than him

Other: Complex relationship with his older brother. Attempted to rush a frat but decided it wasn't for him. Was a Resident Advisor for two years. Receives a yearly National Merit scholarship for his proficiency in math. Works part-time as a cashier at a local boba shop

Kyoshi Jampa - she/her

Major: Literature

Sport: Basketball, attends on a scholarship for the sport

Clubs: Poetry Club, Ceramics Club, Forestry Club, a small stint with the campus newspaper

Family: Abandoned at 5, bounced around the foster system until ending up with Kelsang at 10. Her parents passed away in prison when she was 13, and Kelsang officially adopted her when she was 14

Other: Sings backup vocals for The Flying Opera Company, a small band started by some of her friends. Works as a barista at a local boba shop. Very shy due to bullying during middle and high school. Her and Rangi's families are extremely close

Rangi Sei'naka - she/her

Major: Pre-law, wants to specialize in criminal justice

Sport: Intramural soccer and taekwando

Clubs: Debate Team, History Tutoring, LGBTQ Club

Family: Parents Hei-Ran and Junsik. Her father passed away from leukemia when she was 12

Other: Part of the school's ROTC program in the army branch. Attends this school specifically to be with Kyoshi

Korra Egoak - she/they

Major: Kinesiology

Sport: Intramural soccer, wrestling, and rugby

Clubs: President of the LGBTQ Club

Family: Parents Senna and Tonraq, plenty of close extended family on both sides

Other: Was homeschooled her entire life. Originally scouted to swim for a different college, but suffered an accident in high school that left her both traumatized and paralyzed. She is mostly recovered, but still deals with PTSD and occasional depression. Has a service dog, Naga

Asami Sato - she/her

Major: Mechanical Engineering

Sport: Intramural Jiu Jitsu

Clubs: President of the Robotics Club, LGBTQ Club, Chess Club

Family: Parents Yasuko and Hiroshi. Mother was killed in a home break-in when she was 8. Her senior year of high school her father was arrested for insider trading, and his million-dollar company reverted to her. It is currently being run by others, but she plans to take over after she gets her degree

Other: Part of a sorority

Relationships:

Yangchen & Kavik began dating the summer after their freshman year. Influenced by his older brother, Kavik broke up with her over winter break their sophomore year. He quickly regretted this and spent the next semester making it up to her until they felt ready to date again

Kyoshi & Rangi began dating their senior year in high school after being friends for several years. When Kyoshi got into this college, Rangi instantly decided to follow her

Korra & Asami met while Asami was dating Mako. She, Korra, and Mako all bounced between each other for a few months before the two girls realized they liked each other far more than they liked him. They began dating the spring semester of their freshman year

Yangchen, Kyoshi, and Korra became friends their freshman year and decided to rent an apartment together for their sophomore year. They enjoyed it so much they kept the apartment together until they all graduated

If you want to read more about this AU, check out this post or this post. Or this silly incorrect quotes post. Also feel free to send asks about it if you're interested!

[thornyfluff]

Soundwave and his casette-care grievances: Poor Mamawave cant get a break!

I swear---society hates working parents, and the older I get, the more I think Megatron was right about society.

Anyways, after some smoldering, I made an exasperated flufffic as to what really made Soundwave become a Decepticon that became a comic. Today is also my birthday, btw...😅

***might make a follow-up pic/comic for this if I get enough love for it***

Seriously! 3 weeks of trying to set up a babysitter for the 6 days that Im working during the 2 week gap of summer break limbo. I admitted defeat on Tuesday when the backup babysitter, to the backup babysitter, to the backup baby sitter flaked out. The first one, after meeting us, immediately messaged back that she found a "career boosting" gig/job opportunity closer to home (I have no Idea what redflag if any was percieved, but I blame the fluffy dinobird of mine). The second one called in sick hours before the scheduled time. the third one couldn't do the specific days and times I needed, and I have no idea what happened to the fifth... that was the furthest I got. My first choice, a certain well-known app/site that you could probably guess was the most frustrating. $40 for a 1 month sub to post and message made absolutely worthless by their verification system that failed to process my ID, and despite reaching out to support and escalating it, it's been almost 2 weeks and 5 or 6 inquiries but Im unable to contact any of them because of the stupid verification issue. 🤬😤😵‍💫 Not to mention, their price ranges seemed to be more than I'd make for the part-time hours that I work at this point...

Any hoo... finished another semester. passed my college classes but tanked my 4.0 because Im stupid, and I hate math and this particular geography class (ahem---teacher)... My account's on hold till I pay my tuition... SO ---Summer break, yall! I'll be working with kiddo in tow and building up on a small art/craft shop with various witchy, whimsey, and probably fandom type things, too.

Today, I planned on sleeping in this morning but instead, spent the first 2 hours of my b-day running around the whole neighborhood after my shit-head of a dog who pried the window open and escaped the yard. That furry asshat chased rabbits, played in the tall grass and mud, caused chaos with other dogs and tricked me, and like 4 other neighbors who tried to help and seemed amused about it all into thinking we had a chance. He ran away with dog cookies, pepperoni, cheese, and dog treat jerky. He kept recharging every time we caught up with him by muddy grass rolling and a little decorative water fountain. He finally gave in when he was too tired to run away anymore and accepted a burger tossed into this nice lady's backyard and coaxed into there. (She was so nice! I think she spent half that time watching and laughing at us from the porch tho.) LOL. All of this while keeping track of my kid whose eager helpfulness creates more chaos and listens as well as the dog does half the time... despite the chaos, errands, adulting and exaughstion today, on the bright side, I may have made a new friend who helped me catch him and made the whole thing more amusing (kudos to their kindness!). Kiddo's bday card and gift they bought me by themself (with dad's money) a little while ago had me almost tearing up at the love and thoughtfulness, and my grumpy dragon husband got me my favorite chocolate dipped kanolis made of heavenly chocolate and angel orgasms. He straightened up the house for me and made dinner--- grilled up some lobster tail that was on sale! Soooo damn goood!!! 🥰 I'm gonna sleep so hard in this food coma coupled with the scent of my new 'Art of the Root' candles tonight. 🫠

[urfavleo777]

warnings: a mention of death, loneliness, depression. soundtrack: last christmas, santa baby, let it snow! let it snow! let it snow!

this is part 1.

The day before Christmas 10:15 PM

"Oh, thank you so much, Y/n," your boss said warmly. A few strands fell onto her narrow shoulders, caressing the fabric of her burgundy sweater. She was no more than sixty but with her class she would still beat most of the modern supermodels.

You've been working at Josephine's shop since November with the main goal of earning extra money for your college. You needed it to pay for your college tuition. Before, your financial situation was making you suffer. You no longer had any hope. You were even close to dropping out of college. But then Josephine appeared, looking for an employee for her Christmas store. After a very long period of poverty you could finally afford a nutritious meal during the day.

Your previous boss didn't treat you right. He was behind in paying you money, he didn't respect the fact that you had studies outside of work, and there were times when he was verbally violent towards you.

Josephine was always understanding towards you and took an extremely sensible approach to mental health. She assured you many times that if you felt unwell, she would immediately offer you a break from work for a few days. You tried not to take advantage of her kindness, so at ten o'clock in the morning you diligently fulfilled your duties in the Christmas store.

Today was quite… different. It was Friday evening and instead of enjoying your free time in your small apartment, Josephine asked you to take over the duties until midnight.

"I have so much mess to clean up at home, and tomorrow is the day. If you said no, I would probably have let all my grandchildren down. Last year I promised them I will bake cupcakes for the next Christmas. They were so excited and happy about it…"

You giggled at her adorable confession.

"No problem, I swear," you assured her, but the woman didn't seem fully convinced. "Josephine, I don't mind staying here for a bit longer. It helps me to relieve stress a lot."

Josephine pursed her lips. Then she straightened her slightly hunched back and whispered with a soft smile on her face:

"Your soul is so pure. Your parents must be so proud of you."

At the sound of these words, spoken with surprising lightness, you immediately stiffened.

Parents, a thought crossed your mind.

Right. She couldn't know.

You brushed strands of long hair from your cheek, smiling awkwardly. Josephine started looking chaotically for her purse. Once she found it, she hugged you and squeezed your hands. When you felt her warmth in your hands, you froze. No one has ever given you as much love as Josephine did in that moment.

"Thank you so much, Y/n, but I really have to go. I'll make it up to you!" She turned and started towards the exit. When the door opened, frosty night air rushed in. An old guy walked in, passing your boss, but you didn't pay attention to him. Instead, you looked in Josephine's green eyes for the last time. She lowered her voice a bit, continuing. "Merry Christmas, Y/n."

Oh, no one in this world knew how much you hated those words. You swallowed loudly, pushing away the feeling of sadness with all your strength. The sight of the smile on the woman's face made you feel a knot in your stomach.

"Merry Christmas, Josephine," you replied, trying to reciprocate this warm gesture. After a moment, you realized that you had said it to yourself. Josephine was already gone. Now in the room, there was only you and an older customer, probably looking around for gifts for his loved ones.

11:55 PM

"Uh, is anybody there?"

You caught yourself falling asleep, but the stranger's nervous and deep voice woke you up.

You looked up from the till and saw an older man standing in front of you. His white beanie and fluffy Christmas sweater definitely caught your attention. You rubbed your eyes and was about to laugh when you realized how thin he was dressed. Okay, maybe he wasn't that old.

It seemed like he had arrived by car, because no one would wear just a sweater in a snowstorm like that. Before you could respond, the man overtook you.

"Okay, okay. I know you're about to close, but listen to me. This case is extremely serious. I drove all over town and, damn it! All Christmas shops are already closed! Can you help me choose the gifts? If you don't help me, I will be.."

You raised an eyebrow, trying your best not to smile. He got stuck in his little speech, but you had no idea why. Instead of continuing, he lost himself in your gaze, completely ignoring the ticking of the clock behind you. His mouth hung open slightly and his eyes which were already almost black seemed to darken as he focused on you. His body went rigid as he searched your eyes. Your heart was pounding in your chest. He was beautiful. You had never thought of a guy as beautiful, and it was strange. It was strange how he seemed to be looking right into your soul. But you didn't mind. No, you didn't care at all.

Or.. maybe a little bit.

In fact, you were the one who jumped back like someone had burned you when you realized it was almost time to close the shop.

"You must leave this store. Now."

"Huh?" he frowned, distracted. It took a while for it to dawn on him. "No! You can't do this to me."

You took the key out of the locker and were in the process of closing the cash register. Shit. Nobody taught you how to do that. That was always Josephine's responsibility and she was the one who always closed the shop. The man looked at you strangely. You decided to pretend you knew what you were doing.

"Do you even work here?" he mocked.

You felt his eyes on you and you clenched your jaw. You glanced up to tell him to piss off, but then your eyes met and the feeling of anger melted away. His eyes were widened slightly as you looked at him curiously. He felt the nerves radiating off of you. You shot him a tight lipped smile and you felt himself smile back. Fuck.

"Shit," you cussed under your breath. "I have to close the shop now."

You were still struggling to close the cash register.

"I'll help you close it," he muttered, still staring at you but you were too tired to even notice. "I've dealt with this before, too."

"And why should I believe you? Maybe you are some kind of thief? "

11:58. Fuck. The time was passing.

"I am not a thief."

"And why should I believe you?" you repeated the question once again.

"Just google my name," he sighed a little tiredly. You blinked your eyes twice, not knowing what he meant. "Let me buy something for my parents and I'll do whatever you want."

When you heard parents, you forgot what he had just told you. You were definitely traumatized or triggered by the word "parents", which was usually noticeable by the sudden change in your behavior.

Your soft breaths echoed through the whole Christmas shop. You lowered your head, completely embarrassing yourself in front of the potential client. It was the second time today. At least you didn't have to explain yourself to Josephine because you were able to mask it before.

"Please, don't hurt him." Y/n cried. "Please, I can't lose him too."

[…]

"Don't take loans on the black market, or you'll end up just like them."

[…]

"I'm completely alone."

[…]

"Shit, are you okay?"

You looked up, grimace on your face as the tall body of a man came into view. He looked concerned as he crouched down before you. His dark eyes searched for any indication you were in pain and when he saw you weren't he held out his hand for you to take.

"I'm okay," you nodded. "What am I doing on the floor?"

"I saw you fall," he said, as he lifted you up. You brushed the dust and dirt from your jeans. "Does it hurt?"

"No," you shook her head, still stunned. "Not much anyways."

"You hit the ground pretty hard," he frowned. "Maybe you should get yourself checked out."

You let out a forced laugh and he raised a brow. "Honestly, I'm good."

He nodded his head, eyes narrowed slightly before sighing. "Let me take care of you. Need a ride?"

God, just a few seconds ago he was using his all strength to buy something for his parents. Unless..

"Show me your pockets."

"What?" he frowned. He tried to find some clue in your eyes. "You think I stole something?"

God, he was atleast a foot taller than you were and you had to crane your neck to look at him.

"Well, seems like I have no choice," he shrugged.

The two of you fell silent, it wasn't awkward but neither knew what to say. He emptied all his pockets, the only things he had were his phone and his bank card.

You wanted to sink into the ground.

This stranger just offered to help you and you thought he was a thief. You tilted your head back, thinking about your next move.

You sighed, knowing exactly what you should do.

"Take it."

You handed him a matching sweaters that you assumed should be for his parents. He sighed in relief.

He was about to take out his card to pay, but you placed your hand on his, trying to making him understand that he doesn't have to pay.

"Just close the till, please." You smiled, feeling a bit better now. "And make your loved ones happy."

"No," he refused quickly "I have to pay for it. There is nothing for free."

It took a while to convince him not to pay. He finally sighed and accepted the two wrapped gifts from you. After he closed the till, he offered you a ride once again.

"Why don't you introduce yourself first?"

You were just leaving the store. It was cold. That was perhaps the understatement of the century. You couldn't remember the last time you had been so cold: the spiteful wind sliced through you like a sharpened blade, leaving a chill that shook you to your very core, and you tightened the thick scarf around you neck, pulling it up over your mouth. You locked the door and both went away, looking for his car, which wasn't parked that far away.

"It's strange that you don't know me."

"Woah, so you're kind of celebrity?" you laughed loudly. "You've got a big ego, man."

You finally reached his car. You didn't even notice the color because it was too dark and the car itself was covered in snow. But it didn't matter.

"Oh, that's very kind of you. Thank you." You said surprised as he opened the car door for you. He gave you a small smile. You took the front passenger seat. When you heard the sound of the trunk being closed, you realized that he must have been putting the gifts in there. You saw him through the snow-covered window. His hair was messy, and his sweater was slightly damp from the snow. His pink cheeks totally stole your heart. He looked like a little child after playing in the snow for several hours

"I'm Y/n," you spoke up as he appeared next to you. He clicked the heat button, smiling to himself. "Normal people usually say their name after my introduction."

"Who said I was normal?" you rolled your eyes before bursting out laughing again.

"You've got a beautiful name," he said, starting the car. "You can just call me Colby."

His eyes found yours and he smiled brightly. Your tiredness melted away instantly and you grinned back at him.

"Colby," you whispered to yourself.

"Hm?" he asked, keeping his eyes on the road. After a moment you could feel the relaxing warmth.

"Uhm," you cleared your throat. "You've got a beautiful name, too."

The corners of your mouth turned upwards. Eventually you stopped having everything under control. It was inexplicable. Every word this boy said aroused some emotion in you. It was strange because you two had just met.

He wanted to know more about you, every single thing. What you like, what you love. A twisted smile formed on his face. As he continued to steal glances at a female, who remained clueless about his mind.

You glanced out the car window, trying to see anything but darkness. Thanks to the car lights, you could have noticed that the streets were empty, not a person in sight that late, not even the stray dog walker or person who decided to go for a late night walk or run. Cars passed by from time to time, but there weren't many of them.

"Not a single soul." Colby sighed, a dreamy smile on his face as he looked down on the road. You nodded, stifling a yawn.

"I bet most of them are washing windows now," you whined, making him chuckle. "Can you take me to the nearest gas station? It's not far from home."

You noticed a slight disappointment on his face, which he quickly masked.

"Yeah, sure."

For a moment there was silence, and you took the opportunity to organize your thoughts. You wondered if you should start a conversation about what happened at the store. You were sure Colby had been thinking about it the whole time, but he didn't want to be too insightful. Even if he asked about your past, you wouldn't know what to answer him. That your parents owed a debt to evil people and died for not paying it off?

You squeezed your eyes shut at the thought. You stared at the moon, trying to calm your thoughts. Then you took a moment to appreciate that wonderful, breathtaking boy next to you. You looked at him in some kind of admiration. He was so beautiful that you were about to cry. You were so close to burying your hand in his messy hair, but it took all of your strength to hold back. A smirk formed on his face as he noticed you staring at his facial features. Instead of laughing at you, he simply changed the topic.

"How do you spend Christmas?"

"Hm?" you muttered, your voice still laced with sleep.

Colby raised his eyebrows at you. "You got a Christmas tree?"

You looked up at him and were torn between telling him the truth or lying.

"I spend Christmas alone. I don't have, I don't have anyone around me with whom I could share this evening. Also, Christmas are overrated. "

"I can help," he said, the words dropping out before he could think about them. Ordinarily, he calculated his sentences, sometimes spending hours or even days thinking about how he would word something, whether it was an email to a friend or a hypothetical debate. But there was no time for that now, the dilemma thrust right into his face with no escape route.

"What?" You swallowed.

"I can help you," he said. "You shouldn't be alone in this time. If you let me, I'd love to invite you to dinner with my p—. " he stopped mid-sentence. You felt like crying. No one in your life has ever shown you as much love as this man. Okay, maybe except Josephine.

"You don't mean that," you said quietly.

"I do," he said, a little more confidence in his voice now. "Let me help. I'll do anything. You shouldn't be alone. You can't be alone. Can I help?"

A faint smile grew over your lips and you nodded, colour rising to your cheeks as your smile grew. "Thank you. But your family-"

"Oh, they will be delighted to meet you."

He seemed nice enough, you thought, and there were surely worse ways to spend the next couple of hours than accepting his helping hand: you could take your mind off the solitude and maybe even make a friend.

But nothing could help you forget your past.

To Be Continued.

[aetherawasneverhere]

romᥲᥒᥴᥱ oᥒ thᥱ sιdᥱ

i’ve never used tumblr, idk how to make this look nice-

Summary: Sam finds a part-time job to make a living and meets a sweet coworker who steals all his time and his heart.

Pairings: Fast food worker!Sam Winchester x coworker!reader. Set right before season 1, therefore Stanford!Sam. coworkers to lovers kinda. f!reader. height difference. Finally glasses wearing!reader.

warnings: fluff, use of (y/n), brief mention of body insecurity, not edited

word count: 3.6 k

-this is my first real oneshot because i haven't written fics in so long, bare with me and give me advice or comment. i love love this community so pls do mwah <3

__________________________________________

study, work, sleep. that's all you do at this point in your life. after moving out of your shitty household, away from your family to finally have the independence you always craved.however, you didn't expect this freedom to get you to be working the night shift in a fast food place on the side of the road, near your college dorms just to make 10 bucks an hour. your mother called it “honest work”, you called it bullshit. 

the days blurred together; class, work, study, sleep – if barely 4 hours counted as sleep. you wake up at six, chug coffee (that never seemed strong enough), sit through lectures half-conscious, clock into a job you hate, go home, repeat. it's mundane, but you told yourself that this was adult life now. it's the freedom you had been craving right? so you didn't complain.

you thanked your lucky star every day that your parents begrudgingly paid for your studies. not many had that. they worked harder than ever to continue to pay for your tuition, extra hours and all. deep down, it made you feel kind of bad. it's one of the reasons why you signed up for that stupid job you hate anyway. to help them in any way you could, because you could see the dirty looks they gave you every time they paid for your studies. you hated being codependent so might as well show them you're not a complete disappointment.

after finishing your studies, you put on the flashy yellow polo shirt with the bland logo on your left pec; unconsciously tugging at its mid section that highlight the squish of your body in ways that make you feel uncomfortable. you scoot into your jeans and reach for your glasses on the nightstand, putting them on comfortably on your nose bridge. let's get this show on the road.

and sam, poor sam, he on the other hand was stressed the fuck out. he wasnt supposed to be here, he was supposed to be buried nose deep in law text books. or spending his nights in the library. maybe to prove to himself - or to his dad - when this was all over that he was still useful and independent like a normal person. but sam was far from normal and that was clear.

“you think life’s hard, sammy? Try hunting things that wanna rip you apart.” either his brother or dad would have said, but he didnt care. he wanted a family, but he didn't have the luxury of it. instead he was standing under the flickering fluorescent lights of the fast food joint he found to work, wearing a name tag with a name that barely felt like his own; ‘sam winchester’. 

sure he was far from home, far from the stress of his family but deep down he still felt like he was running. running from what? maybe his responsibilities. no. it wasn't his responsibility to pick up after his father. 

he wasn't looking forward to being the new guy at work, once again having to be thrown into something he'd just have to adapt to. but it wasnt so bad. he had friends in his university, the same one you happened to go to. he had jess, brady, zach, and luis. it wasn't all bad. he bet zach would have a laugh if he saw how ridiculous he looked in this awful uniform. 

his boss was talking, but he was barely listening, his thoughts too clouded by sleep as they walk down the backrooms of the restaurant and towards the kitchen. where coincidentally, you just walked into. and oh boy the moment he spots you, its like a breath of fresh air, you looked around the same age as him and just as tired. maybe he wouldn't be such a sore thumb in this new job after all. 

you clock into work, waving at your coworkers with a polite smile like you always do. according to your boss, this friendly nature and facade was one of the reasons you were always ‘employee of the month’; you almost scoff at the idea. you, a student doing the bare minimum to survive got you this title. It really shows how shitty this joint is, how little effort the employees put in. this ‘hard earned’ title is also the reason why you spot your boss and a tall young man wearing the employee uniform standing by his side walking towards you with purpose.

“(y/n), we've got a new employee joining our team. As an employee of the month, i want you to train him and show him the ropes, alright? good luck” he says without a breach for protest or a reply. you stand there for a few seconds, rather awkwardly as you and the pretty boy in front of you stare at each other. you push up your glasses, pursing your lips ever so slightly as you think of something to say. this was never asked of you, you were used to just keeping your head down and doing your job, now you were being asked to train a new employee. that's fine.

 “Hi.” he greets first, extending his hand politely. this act made your shoulders relax, the warm tone in his voice was enough to break the awkward silence. you are quickly drawn to his eyes, sweet, puppy dog green-brown eyes. it was actually overwhelming as you instinctively look him up and down. 

you clear your throat, jerking your hand forward and grasping his hand; shaking it ever so slightly. you hear him let out a quiet chuckle, your cheek flare in embarrassment as you realize he's laughing at your awkwardness. but it isn't mocking, it's genuinely sweet. “hi! uh-so…im (y/n)” you finally cut through the silence you allowed to linger for far too long.

“sam” he replies kindly, so kindly it made you want to squish him. cuteness aggression. “you'll…train me?” he adds, eyes darting down to your still joined hands. but he didn't pull away, surprisingly enough, but you do as to maintain professionalism even though every inch of you was begging for you to just hold this cute boy's hand. 

“yup, thats what – yeah thats what im here to do – yes.” you stutter out, scolding yourself internally for acting like this. it made you feel like a weirdo. this boy walks into your life, and within a few minutes makes you feel nervous. you love it. “come” you add, swiftly, turning on your heels and walking down towards the staff down near the back of the building just for some basic instructions to get him on his feet.

the next 2 hours were actually fun. he made training feel like bonding rather than work. you help him with the basics; food safety, customer service, register training, efficiency, all the things that keep this crappy fast food joint up and running like the good employee you are. you two manage to talk so much about your lives during that time, that you don't think you've laughed that much in forever. 

you wipe down the counters, the restaurant’s flow of customers slowing down just enough for you to do a general sweep of the kitchen and keep up with the health and safety protocols bestowed upon you. your wrist starts to hurt as you wipe down the counter next to the grill, eyes darting to sam as he readies to cook more of the burgers, which you had taught him to do. “this job is gonna kill me” you mutter, half joking and gently rolling your wrist around as it starts to get sore from all the effort being put into wiping the single smudge of grease on the counter. “feels like ill spend my entire life here, like i aint moving forward, you know?”

sam exhales a laugh, his hand pausing their movements on the grill as he takes in your words. he knew exactly how that felt, its how he used to feel every day living with his dad and brother. more his dad. john winchester was never known for being warm. “yeah, i get that.” he agrees, pausing for a beat to think. “i guess im just used to it, you know. moving, working, not really having the time for – you know, a life” 

his words piqued your interest, putting the dirty rag in the water bucket to pay full attention to him. “yeah? how come?”

“my family business.” he shrugs lightly but it felt forced. “my dad mostly. he had me and my brother in the…hunting business since we were little, town to town, never settling down.” he scrapes crumbles of dried burger buns from the counter absentmindedly, thoughts consuming his head. “this whole…stanford thing is probably the longest i've settled down without him breathing down my neck”

his tone makes your heart clench, though you've only met today, it felt like you knew this boy more than most of the people in this job and your university combined. to be fair, you didn't meet many people. you walk over to the side of the kitchen, sounds of cutlery and pots banging in the background seemed to fade with the importance of your conversation. “thats why you got this job?” you ask cautiously

“yeah. mostly. i just wanted to do something normal.” he confessed, shifting on his feet and following your activity by grabbing the spatula sitting by the grill and going back to what he was practicing previously; flipping patty’s. “no hunting, no family to worry about…even if its –” he gestures to the air around us, glaring at the fluorescent lights above. “this. even if it kind of sucks” you stifle a chuckle, knowing he was right. it surprised you how much this boy and you were alike but also so different. it was a breath of fresh air. 

you felt like you already knew a lot about him, not all the details, but enough to make you want to dig up more. he was struggling to flip a burger with the spatula. you were watching in amusement by the side of the room, admiring him as he sticks his tongue out and attempts to wedge the spatula under the patty one more time before giving up. “here, let me help” you call out loudly enough for him to hear you but not loud enough to be annoying; the unconscious insecurity of being heard after all. you reach him in a quick few steps, standing beside him and placing a gentle hand on top of his holding the tool.

with practiced precision, you help him push the spatula under the meat patty and swiftly flip it over. your eyes are locked on the food in front of you, not realizing the intimate position you've put both of you in. “ah yes, the mighty spatula is rather hard to work with” you muse lightheartedly, earning a laugh from Sam above you which sends a sense of pride through you.

“this is a weapon i cannot handle” he replies back in the same tone, playing along with you as you work the food for him. your grip on his hand was comforting, warm. it was rare for him to allow this kind of physical contact, but it just felt right with you. and you felt the same. 

by the time you realized the position you were in, it made your heart skip a beat. eyes slowly wander up, finally taking in the prominent height difference between the two of you. your eyes meet and it just feels so sweet, warm. a flicker of understanding passes through the two of you, a desire to want to be around each other without fear of judgement or embarrassment. you remember the words he said earlier, feeling the need to speak, you do. “for what its worth, i think its impressive. your independence…and you're not half-bad at flipping burgers” you tease affectionately which sparks another genuine chuckle from him. 

sam feels the tension on his shoulders melt away. “yeah you think so?” he purred. 

“no, you still suck. but you’re getting there” you reply playfully, both of you laughing together. your eyes catch a smudge of ketchup on his cheek, you had no idea how it got there but you instinctively reach to wipe the condiment from his cheek with your other hand.

it makes him flinch for a split second, making you pause. but then he leans into your palm, your thumb continuing its previous motion and wiping the ketchup from his cheek ever so gently. your hand lingers for longer than necessary, but he doesn’t seem to mind. the smile on his lips growing wider, seemingly excited. it makes your face burn and you pull away, dropping both your hands to your side.

you slowly peel yourself from him, letting out a hearty laugh and fixing the tacky uniform; tugging at its collar as the air around the two of you seems to shift. sam’s eyes cast down for a split second, seeming almost disappointed that you had pulled away. “thanks” he mutters back, eyes back at you. he refused to look away, drawn to you so suddenly as if you were everything he ever needed. 

but before either of you can acknowledge what was happening, you smell fire and hear sizzling. your gaze falls on the patty, gasping as you see it burst into small flames. sam yelps and instinctively pulls away from the grill, waving the spatula around before both of your gazes fall on the fire extinguisher. 

“shit!” you hiss, taking a few steps back from the grill. he acts faster than you, reaching for it while you stand there wide-eyed. WHOOSH. the fire extinguisher goes off loudly, covering everything. by everything, you mean everything. the fire, the grill, and you. the fire was gone but so was the meat we were preparing and your uniform covered in white foam.

that was until the boss burst into the kitchen, looking pissed off but mostly worried for us. “what the hell is going on here?!” he shouts, rightfully so, to be honest, you think. his eyes fall on the charred patty, the grill and you covered in foam while sam holds the extinguisher like a weapon. 

you look over at sam to gauge a reaction out of him just to see him already looking at you. a crack of a smile breaks his look of fear, your face mirrors his until you both break into quiet chuckles. these chuckles grow into belly laughs as you lose it, sam places the fire extinguisher on the floor as you laugh at the idiotic situation you found yourselves in. 

you two didn't get into nearly as much trouble as you thought you would, it just put a microscopic stain on your reputation as an employee and put sam to a bad start. but it seemed to be alright with both of you as you walked back to the dorms of Stanford together at about 7pm.

the night was chilly, grey clouds coating the skies as you two walk side by side in comfortable silence. the moment he found out you go to the same university, he offered to walk you to your dorm building and you agreed without hesitation. skip out on this cute guy walking you? no way.

“i swear my feet are so tired, if one more person asked for extra pickles i was gonna lose it…” you murmur under your breath, an incredulous laugh escaping your lips which sparks a softer one from him almost in agreement. “today was so busy, how are you not exhausted?” you ask, adding onto your previous statement. 

he shrugs ever so slightly, grinning down at you with a bashful expression. “guess im just built different” he muses, you bump your hip with his in return. “or maybe i just wasn't running around as much as you were, you were all like-” he mimics your stressed-out movements, working in an imaginary station which makes you playfully roll your eyes. 

you nudge him with your elbow, biting back a soft grin. “hey, i'm not the rookie here, rookie” you emphasize, he elbows you back in return, his laugh is louder this time. the both of you were internally over the moon; proud you could make each other laugh like this not knowing the other was simply happy with the company.

it was like neither of you wanted to reach your dorms, steps trailing slower than normal. the silence between you two seemed to stretch out comfortably - but you decided to break it. “so stanford?” you ask calmly, stuffing your hands in the pockets of your jacket. well, his jacket. the one he insisted you wear after he sprayed you with cold foam.

sam exhales, “well, i needed to get away from my family in some way. where i ended up didn't matter as much” he replied, eyes casting down at the ground as you walk.

“i can understand. your dad doesn't seem like the supportive home-y type” you sympathize, recalling the few things he mentioned about his dad back at the diner. this makes him deflate, guilt stinging your chest as you realize you might have pried too much. “hey, im sorry–” you add quickly, placing a comforting hand on his bicep

to your surprise, he leans into your touch, like hes been carrying this weight for too long. “no, you're okay.” he murmurs. “you're right. my dad isn't really the homey type” he agrees, eyes finally darting from the ground, up at you. well, down at you, again considering the man was a giant.

for a moment, he hesitates as if debating whether to keep going. wondering if you would even care. but the look in your eyes said you would. “my brother…wanted me to stay.” he mutters again, eyes staying locked in yours as you walk. ”i don't think he even knows if i’m alive.” he admits. for a moment it felt like you were the only person he could confide in and vice versa.

“you know…it's so easy to talk to you” sam adds warmly. you could sense the nervousness but genuine interest flowing from him like waves. your hand drops from his arm, brushing against his hand with a feather-like touch for a split second. that split second felt like fire, welcoming fire. 

your nose crinkles ever so slightly at his words, pride and relief rushing through you at his reassuring words. you felt…excitement and triumph. the way he looks at you, his touches and his warmth are all signs that maybe, just maybe, this cute co-worker of yours actually likes you. and before you knew it, you were standing under the arched entryway of your dorm building.

you stop by the entry doors, turning your back to them and facing sam with a grateful smile. he returns it shyly, boldly taking your hands in his. his thumbs run across your knuckles, committing their soft surfaces to memory. he brings your hands to his lips, placing a lingering kiss on them. “thanks for letting me walk you…” he mutters, his voice blending in perfectly with the atmosphere. the crickets, the almost nonexistent breeze of the night.

“you're always welcome to do so” you reply, keeping the intense eye contact from before. you feel the thumping of your heart, growing louder and louder.

“i guess i'll see you tomorrow?...” he continues after a few moments of silence. your palms were clammy but you felt emboldened by his words, placing your hands on his shoulder and using it as leverage to reach his cheek. you hesitate for a few seconds but press up on your toes and brush a quick, warm kiss on his left cheek. his skin was so warm under your lips, you almost didn't want to pull away. but when you do, his eyes are wide with wonder as if he wasn't expecting it but it definitely wasn't unwelcome. 

“...tomorrow” you agree under your breath, slowly pulling your hands from his and stepping back. your hands fumble behind you as you reach for the door knob without looking away from him. the way his uniform hugged his arms, the way it dipped to show the smallest patch skin just below his collar. you wanted to remember it all night. “night sam…” you call out, finally opening the door and stepping into the building. 

sam steps back, eyes lingering on your figure as you walk into the building. a soft sigh escapes his lips, a breath he didn't know he was holding this entire time. it dawned upon him that maybe this whole experience didn't have to be forced. maybe work won't be completely unbearable, not when nights with you like this exist. and little did he know, you felt the same. 

_____________________

[mariacallous]

In July 2020, a 72-year-old attorney posing as a delivery person rang the doorbell at US district judge Esther Salas’ house in North Brunswick, New Jersey. When the door opened, the attorney fired a gun, wounding the judge’s husband—and killing her only child, 20-year-old Daniel Mark Anderl.

The murderer, Salas said, had found her address online and was outraged because she hadn’t handled a case of his client fast enough. In her despair, Salas publicly pleaded, “We can make it hard for those who target us to track us down … We can't just sit back and wait for another tragedy to strike.”

She wanted judges to be able to keep their home addresses private. New Jersey lawmakers delivered. Months after the murder, they unanimously enacted Daniel’s Law. Today, current and former judges, cops, prosecutors, and others working in criminal justice can have their household’s address and phone numbers withheld from government records in the state. They also can demand that the data be removed from any website, including popular tools for researching people such as Whitepages, Spokeo, Equifax, and RocketReach.

Companies that don’t comply within 10 business days have to pay a penalty of at least $1,000. This makes New Jersey’s law the only privacy statute in the US that guarantees people a court payout when requests to keep information private are ignored.

That provision is being put to a consequential test.

In a pile of lawsuits in New Jersey—drummed up by a 41-year-old serial entrepreneur named Matt Adkisson and five law firms, including two of the nation’s most prominent—about 20,000 workers, retirees, and their relatives are suing 150 companies and counting for allegedly failing to honor requests to have their personal information removed under Daniel’s Law.

These companies, which Adkisson estimates generate $150 billion annually in sales, may now be on the hook for $8 billion in penalties. But what’s more important to him is the hope that this narrow New Jersey law could act as a wedge to force data brokers to stop publishing sensitive data about people of all professions nationwide. He’s hoping that this multibillion-dollar pursuit, with its army of union cop households, may be a catalyst for better personal privacy for us all.

If he doesn’t win, the oft-derided data broker industry would have proved that it has a right under the First Amendment to publish people’s contact information. Websites could avoid further regulation, and no one in the US may ever be guaranteed by law to become less googleable. “I never thought we would have such a hard time, that it would turn into such a battle,” Adkisson says. “Just home address, phone number, remove it. One state. Twenty-thousand people.”

This is the first definitive account of how the fate of one of the country’s most intriguing privacy laws came to rest on the shoulders of Adkisson’s latest tech startup, Atlas.

Matt Adkisson is almost your prototypical lifelong entrepreneur. He quit high school at 16 to code video games and small-business websites. His parents insisted, though, that he audit classes across the street from their home, at the US Naval War College in Rhode Island. So he began learning about national security. One lesson he picked up: When judges live in fear and can’t rule impartially, democracies can wither.

But saving democracy wasn't his passion. Making money was. He headed off to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with designs on becoming a consultant or investment banker, but dropped out before senior year. Like so many other young people in the midst of the Web 2.0 frenzy, he had an entrepreneurial itch. Without telling them, Adkisson cashed out his parents’ tuition payment, and in 2006, he and a friend slept under office desks for a month before founding a company called FreeCause with Adkisson’s brother to develop marketing tools for Facebook games. Adkisson later bought shares of the nascent social media startup. Both bets paid millions. In 2009, FreeCause sold for about $30 million.

Adkisson upgraded to nights on a friend’s couch in San Francisco, where he used his wealth to invest in or start dozens of other software companies. As they sold, he became a comfortable multimillionaire. It was his last big deal, in 2018, that set him down the path of privacy crusader. He had sold Safer, which developed a Google Chrome competitor called Secure Browser, to antivirus maker Avast for about $10 million.

Adkisson and a cofounder recall that during a meeting over lakeside beers near offices in Friedrichshafen, Germany, after the deal closed, an Avast executive demanded they feed search activity from Secure Browser’s millions of users to Jumpshot, a sibling unit that was selling antivirus users’ browsing history to companies wanting to study consumer trends.

Adkisson stood to make millions of dollars in bonuses from the proposed integration. He refused. It was too intrusive to share that intimate data, he says, and a violation of trust. (Avast declined to comment on the episode. It shuttered Jumpshot, and this year agreed to pay $16.5 million to settle US government charges over the service’s allegedly deceptive data usage.)

Adkisson left Avast in December 2020 thinking he would keep adding to his portfolio of over 300 startup investments or pursue something in AI, like automating brushstrokes to create on-demand oil paintings. But he couldn’t shake the Friedrichshafen incident. For his web browsing, he started to use VPNs and the privacy-focused search engine DuckDuckGo. He tried to get websites to remove his new East Coast home address. Those efforts mostly failed; companies had no obligation to comply.

These websites that sell addresses or phone numbers typically get that data by buying voter or property records from governments, and user account details from companies willing to deal. The easy access to data enabled by the aggregators can be vital to services like identity verification or targeted advertising. But the customers also can include people who are looking for an old friend. Or investigating a crime. Or someone with a grudge against, say, a judge.

As Adkisson dug into the data broker industry in 2021, he read about how a law that went into effect the year before had given Californians a right to demand companies delete their personal information. So Adkisson and two cofounders launched a service they called RoundRobin, to help Californians do just that for a fee. Services like DeleteMe and Optery were already selling deletion assistance, but Adkisson felt they were more marketing spin than serious tech.

RoundRobin joined the well-known startup accelerator Y Combinator in April 2021 and began developing software to simplify making requests. But the startup had no way to enforce the takedowns it wanted to charge customers for; only California’s attorney general could sue for violations of the nascent law. Data websites ignored RoundRobin.

Given Adkisson’s pedigree, investors held out hope. California privacy activist Tom Kemp, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and others invested about $2 million in RoundRobin that August. But the struggle continued. The cofounders renamed the company to the more serious-sounding Atlas Data Privacy in January 2022. It didn’t help. But then, a break. Just as Adkisson was considering giving up and his initial cofounders were pulling out, a relative of his in California who had worked in law enforcement mentioned Daniel Anderl’s murder—and the law it inspired in New Jersey. “Fate delivered the Garden State,” Adkisson says.

He soon reached out to law enforcement experts, including a former Boston police commissioner and a retired Navy rear admiral. The two told Adkisson stories about cops who were attacked in their homes. They urged him to press on.

The first organization to return Adkisson’s cold calls was the New Jersey State Policemen's Benevolent Association, the state’s largest police union. They said a few of the organization’s 31,000 members needed help containing some inadvertently leaked contact information. Adkisson and a cofounder, J.P. Carlucci, took a stab. Despite limited success, union members were excited by Adkisson’s moxy. In July 2022, a union leadership group voted unanimously to offer Atlas’ service as a benefit to members with the intention of using Daniel’s Law to demand websites remove phone numbers and addresses. The cost, spread across all members paying for the union’s legal protection plan, was hundreds of thousands of dollars annually, Adkisson says.

In August 2022, with the deal signed and thousands of members soon enrolled, Atlas established headquarters in Jersey City, New Jersey, and set out to prove it could deliver better results than back in California. For that, it needed litigation power.

The first six law firms Adkisson called refused to take up the New Jersey cases. They worried about their financial return and the likelihood of success. Judges had discretion over the $1,000 payouts, plaintiffs had to prove physical harm, and to even bring a case, attorneys had to mobilize each plaintiff individually. It wasn’t a good equation.

Over seafood in San Francisco on the waterfront, one attorney sketched out for Adkisson revisions to Daniel’s Law that could make Atlas’ job easier. Adkisson took those suggestions back to the police union, which in turn used its weight in Trenton to push lawmakers to enact the changes. By December 2022, legislators introduced amendments requiring judges to impose financial penalties on websites that failed to honor removal requests, allowing those covered by the law to sue more liberally, and enabling attorneys to more easily bring big cases. In July 2023, just after the third anniversary of Daniel’s murder, the governor signed these amendments into law.

Atlas stayed focused on recruiting more users, from the police union and beyond. Newly hired staff—the company grew to a total of eight people—learned the lingo, like don’t refer to state troopers as “officers.” Adkisson let clients call him directly 24/7 for technical support. He drove his Jeep Cherokee more than 50,000 miles to every corner of the state. The Atlas team spent 18 hours on back-to-back days at a correctional facility to catch every shift, plying union guards with Crumbl Cookies and Shake Shack. “Word started to spread, like, ‘Who the hell are these people?’” Adkisson says. “That brought us credibility.”

Days before last Christmas, Atlas finished the software for users to select the companies to which they wanted to send emailed data removal requests. The tired team gathered over Zoom watching a tally rise as the emails landed in data brokers’ inboxes. Altogether, Atlas would deliver 40 million emails to 1,000 websites on behalf of roughly 20,000 people over the next five months.

Helping users with only the easy targets—the ad-supported websites that tend to pop up when googling someone’s name—“would have been a band-aid on a wound that needed much deeper treatment,” Adkisson says. To provide what it viewed as comprehensive support and more than what competitors offer, Atlas also was facilitating takedown requests to mainstream services such as Zillow and Twilio. They tend to supply data through fee-supported advanced tools that don't pop up on a standard Google query.

Twilio denies that it provides data subject to Daniel’s Law. Zillow didn’t respond to WIRED’s requests for comment. Atlas, Adkisson says, spent about $1.3 million in labor and fees to verify websites it targeted were actually providing home addresses and phone numbers.

The startup got its first response on December 26. Red Violet, whose Forewarn data dossiers help real estate agents vet potential clients, was demanding Atlas cease and desist, erroneously claiming that Daniel’s Law applied only to government agencies and not private companies. Adkisson had expected the legal teeth of the updated Daniel's Law to inspire widespread compliance. This was a rough start. “Demoralizing,” Adkisson says.

Other companies responded with demands to see ID cards of Atlas clients, apparently suspicious that the startup was making up its customers or people demanding takedowns were pretending to work in law enforcement just to be covered by the law. Adkisson told one company they could call requestors to authenticate demands. After all, it had their numbers. Another company suggested that if Atlas clients wanted anonymity, they should have used an LLC to buy property instead of their own names.

Akisson says the most retaliatory response came from LexisNexis, which lets police and businesses search for people's contact information and life history, typically for investigations and background checks. He alleges that instead of removing Atlas clients’ phone numbers and addresses from view, LexisNexis needlessly froze their entire files in its system, impeding credit checks some were undergoing for loan applications.

LexisNexis spokesperson Paul Eckloff disputes that freezing was an overreach. The company deemed that step as necessary to honor the requests submitted by Atlas users to not disclose their data. “This company couldn’t be more dedicated to supporting law enforcement,” he says. “We would support common sense protections.” But he described Daniel’s Law as overly punitive.

To Adkisson, the people being punished were the cops, judges, and other government workers he had met on his Jeep excursions through New Jersey. Among them were police officers Justyna Maloney, 38, and her husband, Sergeant Scott Maloney, 46, who work in Rahway, a tiny city along the border with New York City.

In April 2023, Justyna was filmed by a YouTuber who runs the channel Long Island Audit, which has over 842,000 subscribers. He often films himself trying to goad police into misbehavior, and Justyna asking him to leave a government office became his newest viral hit. Followers inundated the Rahway Police’s Facebook page with about 6,500 comments, including death threats, slurs, and links to the Maloneys’ address and phone numbers on SearchPeopleFREE.com and Whitepages. Scott says Facebook wouldn’t remove the comments linking to the contact information. Neither would the police department, citing First Amendment concerns. Tensions boiled.

In August 2023, Scott received texts demanding $3,000 or “your family will be responsible for paying me in blood.” The texts listed his sister’s name and address. An hour later, the same number sent a video of two ski-masked individuals bearing guns inside an unknown location. Atlas wasn’t up and running yet, so Scott, determined to delete all his family’s contact data online, sat on his lagoonside deck every evening for weeks, crushing Michelob Ultras to stay calm as he navigated takedown forms. He put in so many requests to Whitepages for his family that it barred him from making more.

The Facebook comments linking to the Maloneys’ address only came down after they sued their bosses last November for violating Daniel’s Law. This past January, a state judge ruled that the risk to the couple “far outweighs” potential harm to the police department from censorship complaints.

As Adkisson looked to sue noncompliant data websites, he had no trouble signing up the Maloneys as plaintiffs. And because Daniel’s law now made it possible, thanks to Atlas and the police union’s lobbying, to collect guaranteed penalties from data websites, Adkisson had been able to secure five law firms, including prominent national firms Boies Schiller Flexner and Morgan & Morgan, and some attorneys who personally knew the Daniel of “Daniel’s Law.”

On February 6, Atlas and the legal team began filing lawsuits, naming the Maloneys and about 20,000 other clients as plaintiffs. In state court, 110 cases remain unresolved across five different counties. Thirty-six lawsuits are being contested in federal court before Judge Harvey Bartle III, who is based in Philadelphia but commutes across the Delaware River to Camden, New Jersey, because judges based in the state were conflicted out by virtue of being eligible for Daniel’s Law protections.

Eight defendants quickly filed motions to dismiss in state court, but they were all denied. At the federal level, most companies are arguing together that the New Jersey statute violates their First Amendment right to freedom of speech. It’s an argument that’s allowed personal information to stay online before. Federal courts have given leeway to publication of lawmakers’ contact information and actors’ birthdates, leaving doubts over whether cops and judges and their homes and phones would fare any better.

Defendants have told Bartle to consider a US Supreme Court decision in 2011 that found a law in Vermont that protected doctors’ privacy unreasonably singled out data use by drugmakers. Atlas’ foes view Daniel’s Law as similarly arbitrary because it holds New Jersey agencies to different standards than their companies when it comes to keeping data private. They also say it’s unfair that they must remove numbers that cops still list on personal websites.

Some companies fighting the lawsuits note that the $1,000 penalty that the law guarantees may lead to companies acting out of fear and removing more data than needed, or honoring requests that are actually invalid. What’s more, these defendants say that Atlas’ true motivation is money. They claim that instead of trying to quickly protect those already signed up when last year’s amendments passed, Atlas sought out more users to run up the potential monetary judgment and duped them into paying for protections they could exercise for free themselves.

Adkisson disputes the accusations. He says Atlas needed time to finish its platform and ensure it was able to properly log usage, so that judges wouldn’t dismiss cases based on technicalities like takedown requests ending up in spam folders. The startup also won’t be profiting from the lawsuit, he says. Two-thirds of any proceeds will go to the users represented; anything he and Atlas are left with after covering the costs of bringing the lawsuits would be donated to law enforcement charities and privacy advocacy groups through Atlas’ nonprofit arm, Coalition for Data Privacy and Security. Privacy is “a very real, tactical, and visceral need,” Adkisson says.

He was reminded of that this past May when he took WIRED in his Jeep to meet with Peter Andreyev, a cop in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey, and president of the statewide Policemen's Benevolent Association. Around dusk that day, Adkisson handed Andreyev a search result for his name on DataTree.com, a website that sells property records. Andreyev slipped on his black-rimmed glasses and brought his linebacker figure toward a conference table to review the page. It took him just two seconds to tense up. “Oh shit,” he said.

He stared at a street-view image of his home, and a birds-eye shot with his address overlaid. The square footage was in there too, for good measure. His head visibly rattling and legs restless, Andreyev pounded the table. “I—I’m pretty infuriated by this.”

Like many law enforcement officers, the 51-year-old rarely goes a day without nightmares about some known thug or detractor attacking him and his family. The DataTree printout reinforced for him that it would take just a few clicks for anyone to target him in the vulnerability of his own home. WIRED pulled up Andreyev’s report from DataTree with just a free trial.

As Andreyev continued to study the page, Adkisson pointed out something he viewed as particularly galling. In February, Atlas had sued First American, the $6 billion title insurance company that operates DataTree, for allegedly not complying with removal requests. Andreyev had been listed as one of the lead plaintiffs, alongside the Maloneys. In the following weeks, DataTree removed Andreyev’s address from one section of the search result for his name but left it up on the map that Andreyev was now staring at. “That’s no way compliant,” Andreyev said. “Fuck, it pisses me off.” First American declined to comment. As the legal battle plays out, Andreyev says he's left to continue looking over his shoulder—even at home.

The antidote of making officers more difficult to find could require greater creativity from those investigating or advertising to them, says Neil Richards, a Washington University School of Law professor and author of Why Privacy Matters. But it doesn’t make the work impossible. Richards, who isn’t involved in the Atlas litigation, says courts need to recognize that “privacy protections are a fundamental First Amendment concern, and one that's even more important than a company's ability to make money trafficking in phone numbers and home addresses.”

In the coming months, Judge Bartle will decide whether cops and judges living in fear imperils public safety. If so, he’ll have to settle whether Daniel’s Law is the least onerous solution. A loss for Atlas and its clients would effectively be treating “anything done with information” as free expression, Richards says, and stymie further attempts to regulate the digital world.

On the other hand, a victory for Atlas could be a boon for its business. Adkisson says tens of thousands of people across the country have joined the company’s waiting list: prison nurses, paramedics, teachers. All of them, he adds, anticipating someday gaining the same removal power as New Jerseyans. Since the beginning of 2023, at least seven states have passed similar measures to Daniel’s Law. None of those, however, include the monetary penalty that gets lawyers interested in pursuing enforcement. “Step one is, win here,” Adkisson says, referring to New Jersey.

After the dispiriting start, he thinks momentum is swinging in Atlas’ favor. In August, the startup raised its first funding since 2021, about $8.5 million in litigation financing and equity investment.

Adkisson says compliance with more recent removal requests is increasing, and a few defendants are settling. In September, a state judge approved the first deal, in which NJParcels.com owner Areaplot admitted to 28,230 violations of Daniel’s Law and accepted five years of oversight. PogoData, a revenue-less website that had made property owners’ names searchable, settled this month. Bill Wetzel, its 79-year-old hobbyist owner, would owe $20 million for breaching the deal but he says he supports removing names of officers in harm’s way.

Then again, against the better-funded defendants with more at stake and unpredictable courts, Adkisson recognizes that a broader victory for privacy and Atlas is uncertain. In telling his story, he wants to ensure there’s opportunity for people to learn from any missteps if Atlas fails. But his advisers, including former boss Steve Avalone, don’t expect Adkisson to give up easy. They describe him as the ultimate gadfly—unorthodox, tenacious, and wealthy. “There’s few people with that horsepower and that charisma,” Avalone says.

For his part, Adkisson says he’s driven by a sad truth. The tragedies, fueled in part by contact information online, that judge Salas wanted to bring an end to after her son’s murder haven’t stopped. Last October, a man allegedly shot to death Andrew Wilkinson, a Maryland state judge, who hours earlier had denied the man custody of his child. The National Center for State Courts said it was the third targeted shooting of a state judge in as many years.

Maryland investigators say they believe the now-deceased assailant found Wilkinson’s address online, though they never recovered definitive evidence beyond a search query for the judge’s name. When he heard about the murder the day it happened, Adkisson immediately googled Wilkinson. His address was right there.

[searchtuition]

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[campiona1]

Top Tutorial in Sonitpur » Amazing, Superior & Digital

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[crowmagus]

Ritual Sacrifice Works

It’s blood magic 101, you kill something - you get power out of it equivalent to its value. 

But, the thing about ritual sacrifice is that people overestimate the value of a soul really - I mean particularly animal souls. Human souls are a whole different thing and are not the focus of this class. And frankly, you’re not going to find anyone teaching that sort of stuff with the current political climate. 

Anyways, what really trips people up is “value”. What is the sacrifice of a goat really worth? Now, I’ve been pushing for this university to start teaching rudimentary economics - but they keep turning me down. So unfortunately I’ve got to teach you all economics instead of getting right into the blood magic. 

A metaphor I always like to use is think about a protein bar. 

Y’know right now for a good protein bar you can get it at the store for $2.00. Honestly I even balk at that price but I do pay it because I like to have some protein bars at home for a quick snack if I’m on the go. 

But imagine now that you’re trapped in the Appalachian Frostwoods, and you’re starving. Now how much would you pay for that Protein bar? How much value does it have? 

Ask a starving person and they’d pay any price for that food. 

Value is subjective - this is not just a matter of our modern markets, it is a matter of reality. Now, I know the average person going to study magic doesn’t like talking about the financial market. 

It sucks, I get that - but you really need to start thinking about supply, demand, effort, labor, cost benefit analysis, all that boring shit. 

I hate to break it to you, but magic isn’t exciting most of the time. You’re going to have to transmute some very esoteric experiences into numbers, and you’re going to have to check and double check those numbers to make sure your ritual actually works. 

You want to know what the #1 cause of death for magicians? It’s not demonic interference, despite what the tabloids will tell you. It’s not arcane feedback, it’s not overdraw, it’s none of these fancy things you learn about in your stories. 

No, it’s overconfidence. You’ll have amateur - hell even experienced magicians. You’ll have them using their “gut” feeling to cast spells. They’ll feel like they’re invincible - they sacrificed 100 chickens to build their water breathing spell. 

They get overconfident and then they’ll act all surprised when 5 minutes into a submerged megastructure they suddenly can’t breathe anymore. 

So let’s talk about this, let’s talk about value. 

Blood sacrifice is huge right now. Nearly 30% of the world’s chickens and rats are now being sold to magicians for blood sacrifice or other magical rituals. You can buy one hundred chickens for around 200 bucks. 

Ten years ago, that cost would have been at least triple. Now imagine how much a chicken would be worth before factory farming, imagine how much work goes into raising a chicken in ancient egypt.

Let’s say you’re working off of a spell written one thousand years ago, and it asks for 10 chickens to protect you from bad luck and ward off foul smells for two years. Well, I got bad news for you buddy. If you try to cast that spell with ten chickens - you’re lucky if you get half a day of warding from that thing. 

But what if I told you that another person had that spell work for a year with just one chicken? Some of you seem interested in that. If there’s one thing every magic student loves, it's a loophole. 

Well sorry to disappoint you but this isn’t the loophole you’re looking for. We’re back at subjectivity, we’re back to the protein bar in the middle of the freezing woods. 

Instead of being a well off magic student with your tuition paid by mommy’s money, imagine you’re destitute. You’re living in the middle of a corn field, you can’t afford a tent, and your body is withered from malnutrition. 

For some reason, you’re trying to cast this spell. The two bucks you’d pay for a chicken is suddenly worth a lot more isn’t it? I’m willing to bet you’d be able to get that spell to work for YEARS off of just one chicken. 

Now imagine you couldn’t buy a chicken, but instead had to catch one in the wild? Imagine working yourself to exhaustion catching one. 

That chicken's value has gone up even more. 

But you have to remember - the value of that chicken that you just cost, it’s subjective. It can change, it works both ways.

If some big industrial magic company comes by you and offers you ten bucks for that chicken that you nearly died catching, it’s not going to really be that much more effective for /them/ than a farm-raised chicken. 

Because for them - for the people buying it, the amount of labor for them specifically is not really higher. They’re paying such a low cost for this chicken. You might think paying 10 bucks for a 2 dollar chicken is going to give you five times the value - but that’s only the case if 10 dollars is worth 5 times as much to you as 2 dollars. 

I see some of you are scratching your head, and I get that. But you have to remember that for a multi-million dollar corporation, such small numbers are basically the same. 

If I ask one of you for two cents, you’re going to have about the same reaction as if I asked for one cent. You have roughly similar emotional attachment to such small values. 

These facts about subjective value are why it’s so hard to scale up magic on an industrial scale. It devalues itself. 

The only way these massive corporations really work is by employing tons of grunts with subjectively high value of their sacrifices. And even then it’s tricky, very tricky. 

You can’t game magic, trust me - we’ve been trying for thousands of years. Over the course of your time at this university, you’ll be developing a sense of honesty. You’ll learn to quantify the true value of things from your perspective. 

If you have any doubts - hell even if you’re confident. I implore you to run the numbers. 

Now with that out of the way, I’d like all of you to turn to page 87 in your textbooks and start reading about the “Butcher’s Principle”. I’m going to head over next door and bring some pigs in for our next demonstration.

[snoevergarden]

❝ And I'll be right here when wake up, Right by your side❞

Body half hurt from laying on your left side for too long. Track of time forgotten. 1:31 am. Have to wake up at 7:30 am. Sit at the same boring study table, zoning out and getting up after 2 hours of just staring at the books, not memorizing a single word.

All day spent inside these four walls. Only time you leave is when you have practice exams at your tuition classes. As soon as you step foot inside the class, you wanna go home. Sitting for the exam, you start missing your boring study desk.

Drops of tears on the dry and empty exam papers. Pulling out your mask and putting it on so no one sees you crying.

I wanna go home.

2:15 am.

Still no sign of sleep. Just blurry vision as tears after tears swell up and fall down on either side as you lay flat on your back on your empty bed.

When did it get this lonely?

Mindlessly scrolling through pictures on the internet. Viewing people's story. 10+ unanswered dms. That one friend telling you all about the exciting things happening to her.

“I'm getting a haircut today. Ooh! And also a new haircut. *inserts picture* It's going to be like this. I'm so excited!”

“Going to have picnic with co-workers! My job is the best.”

"DID I TELL YOU I'M GOING TO BE WORKING AS AN ASSISTANT FOR A CELEBRITY MODEL?”

“I'm SO excited! I'm going to see the movie today!!”

Ah yes, the new movie. You were excited too. So happy that you were looking forward to see it forgetting all about the upcoming long exams.

- That's great

[Sent]

Replying to texts when you don't even want to open them. Just so you don't seem rude a few extra words and some emojies.

The door to the room creaks open. He slowly walks in. Careful not to wake you up.

Wake who up? You weren't even asleep.

He slowly got in bed beside you. Hugging your waist and pulling you closer. You try your best not to make a sound and cry silently.

But the heavy rise and fall of your chest and he knew you weren't as peacefully asleep as he hoped you would be.

“Why are you still awake?”

No response.

“It's almost 3 am. I know you're awake. Why aren't you-

You sit up on the bed.

“I don't want to sleep.”

Wet cheeks getting more wet from the new flowing tears. All everyone ever tells you these days is to eat, sleep, take breaks and study. You're tired of it. You're tired of everyone and everything. Exams aren't helping, no one is helping. Loss of confidence, feelings of loneliness. Seeing others your age going out and having fun. Doing the latest trends. Earning money. Even one of your classmates went to see the new movie despite the upcoming exams. She went with her sister. Your sister lives miles away from you. You didn't tell Nanami because he's an actual busy man unlike you, who sits on the same dull spot everyday and just zones out.

I can't do this anymore.

“Love, are you al-”

“I don't wanna talk about this.”

Voice broken from crying. You try your best to talk and suppress the ache in your throat.

“Let's just go to bed”

He grabs your hand and turns your face towards him. Puffy red eyes and disheveled hair. You looked more tired than him.

“Did you take a nap after eating?”

You cry out more shaking your head.

“You woke up so early and then gave a 2 hour exam. You didn't rest after coming home?”

You didn't look at him. Just soft sniffles and tears.

He pushes your head gently towards his chest and holds you. Your soft cries was the only thing he heard in the dimly lit room. Rubbing your back with one hand and running his other one through your hair.

“Tell me.”

You cry harder burying your head in his chest.

“I'm here to listen.”

Your cries slowly soothe down.

“I'm sorry,” he says. “You've been feeling lonely haven't you?” You don't reply. Just your head on his chest, hugging him tightly. “I've been so busy, I didn't realize I was neglecting you. I'm sorry, I'll make it up to you-”

“It's not you!”

You finally meet his eyes with your red ones. Of course it's not him. It never was him. In fact, he's the only one helping you go through all this despite being stressed himself. You sometimes felt guilty for always being this needy for him. For always wanting him by your side. For always just... wanting him.

“It's everything and everyone around me. I just can't do this anymore. People my age are out there having fun and actually doing things, while I'm here all day everyday sitting in the same spot studying for meaningless exams which are draining me mentally and physically.”

Nanami listens to you intently as he always does. Gentle rubs on your back.

“I'm happy for my friends. I really am. It's just... I'm not feeling very happy at the moment so..”

You felt terrible for feeling that way. Feeling jealous of your friends who were having fun and doing things you looked forward to doing. You know it's not their fault but you can't control your feelings either.

“I feel like a cold hearted person."

More tears.

You said nothing and just laid down curling up, facing the other way. Wishing the tears would just stop.

A strong hand curling up around your waist pulls you closer to him. Gently caressing your hair and hugging you tightly.

Nanami knows your 'leave me alones' mean 'don't leave, stay.' He knows when you push him away, you want him to pull you closer. He knows when you don't 'want to talk about it' you actually want to say a lot about it.

“Sometimes.” his deep soothing voice which you find so comforting, so close against your ears . Hands still caressing through your hair. “Not feeling happy is okay.”

-

“Being envious of others doesn't make you a bad person. Everyone is always envious of someone. The people you see on the internet having a good time, they're also envious of someone or something. Doesn't mean they're a bad person. It's just.. natural feelings.”

“You're having a stressful time, and I understand. I understand your feelings. You don't have to push yourself and you are not a bad friend. Sometimes,” his rough big hands feel so soft when he's caressing your hair like this, while you hide away your face in the pillow.

“We just don't want to hear about other people's life, and it's totally okay. Does not mean you wish bad upon them or anything. It just means, you're not in a good mental state at the moment.”

“It does not make you a cold hearted person.”

“It makes you someone who's trying her best to do things right."

You turn around and burry your face in his neck while he holds you tightly.

“I'm just so tired Kento,” you cry into his chest. “I feel like I'm missing out on so much. People promise to make plans with me and then cancel last minute and make it with someone else.”

“You can make plans with me you know. How about we take a break tomorrow and go see that movie-” “I don't want to.”

You break away from his embrace and lay on your side, facing him. Your face. It looked so worn out. Nanami wiped the tears away and caressed your cheek.

“I won't be able to enjoy it plus it's not about just the movie.” “I know.”

He really does know.

Your phone beeped. A new notification.

But before you can reach for the phone, Nanami was quick to get it himself.

[Just finished watching the movie! OH AND I ALSO GOT MY HAIR CUT!! 🤭✨

*photo*

What do you think?]

He sighs.

"Who is it?"

Nanami simply switches off the phone and puts it on the bedside table.

"No one."

Deep down he knew you didn't want to reply to the message either. You thanked him in the back of your mind for not giving you the phone.

"Thank you."

3:45 am

His arms hold you tightly, face buried in your hair while you face the other way. Peacefully asleep in his embrace.

“I love you.”

He kisses your head.

“And I'm proud of you.”

His eyes closing slowly, taking in your scent.

I love you too

“Kento.”

“Hm?”

“Will you be gone when I wake up?”

“No.”

“I'll be right here when you wake up.

Right by your side.”

[readychilledwine]

we want the juicy details on your sexual awakening

It's not that juicy. It's actually fairly sad, but someone else may be at this point and need to hear it.

Warning - questionable consent, technically a form of sex work, total power exchange, abusive relationships, mental health issues, learning to adapt, and becoming a survivor instead of a victim.

I was a really really good kid and teen. Like I addressed, I got my kicks from fanfiction. I dated once in high school, and it never went further than kissing (which caused my first break up and broken heart). My first "What is happening to my body," came from watching The Mummy, and it wasn't something I could discuss with anyone besides my older brother who did the best he could to try to talk to me about safe sex.

I moved away from my parents in 2014 and went to a college about 4 hours away. Aka- close enough to mom and dad to drive home once every couple months, not close enough for them to randomly show up. I was an art major focusing on art history and visual design, and that required me to take a life drawing class.

Tender 18 year old Liz, a starving college student working two jobs, ended up catching the eye of one of the male models, and we started talking a lot. I found out after a month of him taking me on dates, surprising me with gifts, and him staying up with me when I'd be lonely because I didn't live on campus have friends, that he was married and him and his wife were looking for a girlfriend for him since she had a boyfriend on the side. I don't regret this choice because it shaped who I am today, but I stupidly agreed to go into it without having set my own boundaries and limits.

He had rules for me. Rules I can recite clearly to this day: he dresses me, I do not make financial choices without him, I am to tell him where I was at all times and leave my tracker on, he decides what I eat and when, no drinking, no smoking, and no other partners. If I listened, he would pay my tuition, books, help with rent, etc. At the time, I did not realize that I was entering a total power exchange dynamic, and he knew that.

Those starter rules evolved into more... sex based rules, and after 3 months, I ended up losing my virginity to him after he told me refusing was breaking his rules, and if I broke his rules, my allowance was cut off, and I really needed help with rent, friends. I am not proud of that decision, but that decision was made.

I stayed in this relationship with him hanging financial security and my own naivety over my head for close to 10 months. My dad is a law enforcement officer, and he is the one who noticed the change in my personality and looks.

I had waist length dark brown hair. I came home blonde with my hair cut to my lower neck. I stopped wearing Converse and Vans and started wearing heels and sandles more. I would get really anxious and upset if I wasn't near my phone or could not find it to meet my required check-ins. I cried. Alot. Yelling made me actually panic. My dad made me sit down with a female investigator and answer questions about everything.

When she was done and confirmed to him what was happening, he then proceeded to get my brothers, a uHaul, and my apartment keys and move me back home. He had my phone bill at that point, so he blocked the couple, her boyfriend, and their friends that I had the displeasure of meeting and ensured I never heard from them again.

Cohearsed consent is not consent. The second I started therapy and realized that, I spiraled. The weight of everything set in, and I realized I had been a victim of sexual assault. I began to cope by being hypersexual. Within a year, I'd had sex with close to 30 people trying to reclaim my body and, in turn, endangering myself until I met my ex fiancé.

When I met him, things changed significantly. He was a stepping stone in my healing and helped me find religion and value in myself beyond my body. Ironically, my healing and finding the wrong religion (catholics don't seem to be a fan of spirituality) is what led to our engagement being called off. I was 21 when we stopped seeing each other.

I slowed down at that point signicantly and cut off all sex. I was done with it and decided never again. I could please me better than anyone else could anyways. Then, I met baby daddy, and we started as strictly friends with benefits. He is the safest dom I've ever had, the kindest man I've ever met, and from the bat, he understood me more than I understood me. He saw me for me and cared for me despite the damaged goods.

He triggered the true awakening. We took sex between us slow, exploring things gently, talking about what I wanted to try and keeping track of what I liked, what he liked, and meeting in a happy middle. He indulged my want to explore with other women and just sat and watched. Then, when we felt I was ready, he introduced me to the swinging/bdsm lifestyle, and it helped me process the remaining bits of trauma I had with him beside me every step of the way. He helped shape me sexually into who I needed to be to heal and then who I deserved to be sexually for me.

I don't know at what point FwB turned into us living together and telling each other how much the other means to us almost daily, but now we're here, cuddling on couch, exhausted from taking care of our daughter, and discussing which one of us gets the last chocolate peanut butter overnight oats packet and *whispers* marriage.

Him and Sophia are the happy ending 18 year old Liz thought she was losing when she was desperate to pay rent. He helped me heal, learn who I was in terms of sex, and gave me the safest place to land.

One might say I'm pretty attached to him forever now 🤣

Ps - let me tell ya, missionary isn't boring when it's with someone who thinks you're the most beautiful woman he's ever seen, pregnancy stretch marks, and all. 💕